Control of an Unconventional VTOL UAV for Complex Maneuvers
Date
2013-01-25
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Abstract
The increasing potential applications of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) provides
the motivations for numerous research to focus on developing fully autonomous and
self guided UAVs with the purpose of controlling UAVs in confined environments.
Current UAVs control systems are not able to offer the precise trajectory regulation
required in autonomous flight technology. These systems fail to control aerial vehicles’
performing complex maneuvers through confined environments because current
UAV designs do not have suitable control mechanisms providing agility and stability
for the required maneuvers. New advances in control theory are required to overcome
these limitations in order to enable aggressive autonomous vehicle maneuvering
while adapting in real time to changes in the operational environment. This thesis
addresses a control problem of an unconventional highly maneuverable Vertical Takeoff
and Landing (VTOL) UAV, using tilted ducted fans as flight control mechanism.
The main purpose of this research is to design a nonlinear control methodology that
enables the vehicle to use the full potential of its flying characteristics for independent
control of its six degree-of-freedom, including orientation and position of the UAV.
This thesis investigates maneuvering inside obstructed environments in the presence
of external disturbances such as wind, ground and wall effects. Achieving this goal is
possible due to a revolution in aviation control by introducing Oblique Active Tilting
(OAT) mechanism. Capabilities of OAT system will be fully used in controlling the
UAV to enhance its maneuverability.
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Keywords
Robotics
Citation
Amiri, N. (2013). Control of an Unconventional VTOL UAV for Complex Maneuvers (Doctoral thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/25452